As a former resident of DC (Logan Circle), Its good to see a thread on DC.
Someone who still lives there should do some leg work, get out the camera and take some shots. I would be particularly interested in the Mass. Avenue redevelopment, the Convention Center area and South Capital Hill. Posting a list is easy

As a former resident of DC (Logan Circle), Its good to see a thread on DC.
Someone who still lives there should do some leg work, get out the camera and take some shots. I would be particularly interested in the Mass. Avenue redevelopment, the Convention Center area and South Capital Hill. Posting a list is easy

dc_denizen has posted several neighborhood photo tours in the last few months

Envisioning City Life Along the Rivers
Developers Pour Billions Into Reviving Business and Cultural Attractions by the Potomac and Anacostia
By Anita Huslin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, August 20, 2007; Page D01

In the hottest days of summer, Paris becomes the Riviera, when it transforms two miles of the Seine into a beach with cabana boys by day and concerts at night. Every July, Venetians crowd the canals on boats and gondolas to celebrate the marriage of the city to the sea. For a month every fall, the Baltic archipelago city of Stockholm sets a waterfront stage for an international jazz festival.

And in Washington, perhaps the world capital of festivals and celebrations, one of the more heralded annual events that focuses a spotlight directly on its waterfronts is . . . a cleanup project. Earlier this year, the Capital River Relief project plucked 50 tons of garbage from the Anacostia and Potomac rivers.

While hardly glamorous, the decades-long effort to restore Washington's waterways has cleared the way for bigger changes. With few large undeveloped tracts in the Washington region's urban core, the banks of the Potomac and Anacostia have suddenly become hot property.

More than $2 billion in revitalization projects are under construction in D.C. neighborhoods along the rivers, and another $10 billion worth of developments are in the pipeline. Downstream, a $2 billion mini-city is rising along the shores of the Potomac in Prince George's County. And all of this activity is prompting the city of Alexandria, across the river, to begin plotting its own waterfront renaissance.

Nearly 2 1/2 square miles of land are under redevelopment along the Southeast and Southwest shorelines of the District, an area the size of Takoma Park. On the Southwest waterfront, parking lots and concrete walls are slated to make way for condos, restaurants and shops, and 13 acres will be dedicated to a tree-lined esplanade, public piers and parks. On the Southeast side, where a grand staircase is being built from the new Nationals stadium to the edge of the Anacostia River, developers hope to take a page from such successful waterfront revitalizations as Baltimore's Fells Point, San Antonio's River Walk and Paris's Plage in transforming nearly 6 acres into homes, stores and offices. A 42-acre site formerly known as the Southeast Federal Center will be transformed into nearly 3,000 residential units, stores and restaurants, office space, and a riverfront park.

In addition, 22 miles of new walkways are planned to link the areas along the shoreline. And if planners have their way, more park space will be opened up for such uses as kayaking and boating.

The partnership brochure claims 33 cranes downtown a year ago. Last year, we had 12 cranes up at Dulles Airport alone. It made me wonder why Dallas was bragging about having 30-40 cranes active this summer...

The District of Columbia launched the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative (AWI) in March 2000 bringing together more than 20 different Federal and District agencies with land or jurisdiction along the River. Over the next three years, with input from community residents and renowned waterfront planning experts, the City outlined its vision for revitalizing the river and its waterfront in the Anacostia Framework Plan.

In 2003 City Council unanimously approved a Small Area Plan for the Southwest Waterfront, a premier waterfront destination just steps from the National Mall. The Anacostia Waterfront Corporation is charged with implementing the City's vision for the Southwest Waterfront. When complete, this 47-acre site will include a unique blend of retail, residential, office, maritime, hotel, park and cultural space that create a vibrant, amenity-rich 24-hour neighborhood for both District residents and visitors.

South Capitol Waterfront & Ballpark District
Ballpark is the Draw but the Waterfront is the Focus
Project Overview

The South Capitol Waterfront represents a unique opportunity to create a true waterfront destination on the Anacostia River. The area includes the new Washington National's ballpark and 60 acres surrounding the stadium, bound by the Anacostia River and South Capitol Street, New Jersey Avenue, and M Street, SE. Plans call for an exciting and vibrant neighborhood with a diverse mix of retail, entertainment, residential, and office uses. The new stadium will provide a unique and exceptional experience for baseball fans and act as a catalyst for the development of a waterfront entertainment destination for neighborhood residents and visitors to enjoy year-round. When complete, the South Capitol Waterfront is expected to generate $10 to $15 million per year in new tax revenues for the District, provide countless new jobs for District residents, and create business opportunities for local, small, and disadvantaged business enterprises. As a directive of the original City Council legislation financing the ballpark, AWC now owns the land that constitutes the ballpark site, has prepared an overall development strategy for the area, and is working to facilitate the redevelopment of publicly held parcels of land located adjacent to the ballpark. The revitalization of the South Capitol Waterfront will also include the construction of the Anacostia Riverwalk between the ballpark and the Washington Navy Yard, which will include a five-acre public park at the Southeast Federal Center and a new ferry pier at the foot of First Street, SE. Site 60 acres surrounding the new Washington National's ballpark, bound by the Anacostia River and South Capitol Street, New Jersey Avenue, and M Street, SE.

Poplar Point

Reconnecting Historic Anacostia with the Anacostia Waterfront

Project Overview

Poplar Point encompasses more than 110 acres of federal land adjacent to Historic Anacostia, directly across from the Navy Yard. Development efforts in this area will strive to reconnect historic Anacostia and its residents back to the Anacostia River. Currently, the site is isolated from nearby neighborhoods. Plans call for the site to be revived as a green gateway to the Anacostia River and act as a catalyst for neighborhood economic development. The transformation will feature state-of-the-art ecological restoration as well as cultural, historical, and community attractions. AWC is currently working with the National Park Service and the U.S. Congress on transferring the ownership of Poplar Point from the federal government to AWC. The National Park Service has established a series of conditions that must be met as part of the transfer including a relocation strategy for the existing National Park Service facilities. Plans for the site must also include a 70-acre cultural park, civic memorials (including one honoring Frederick Douglass), wetlands, and residential, commercial, and office development. In March 2006, AWC issued a Request for Proposals to develop the site plan and received proposals from 15 consultant teams. A team consisting of representatives from representatives of AWC, the National Park Service, the DC Sports and Entertainment Commission, and the DC Office of Planning evaluated the proposals and selected a team, led by Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill Architects, which includes Hargreaves Landscape Architecture, Lee and Associates, Delon Hampton and Associates, and Justice and Sustainability.

Anacostia Metro Station Redevelopment

A New Economic Development Hub for Historic Anacostia

Project Overview

AWC is leading an effort to redevelop the Anacostia Metro Station site as a multi-modal transit facility and mixed-use hub for shops, apartment residences, and government offices. A centerpiece of the plan will be a new headquarters building for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) and 200,000 square feet of District government offices—including the AWC’s headquarters. The development will bring jobs and revitalization to Historic Anacostia, stimulating economic activity that benefits the entire community. AWC has completed architectural and feasibility analyses for the relocation of WMATA’s headquarters to Anacostia and briefed members of the WMATA Task Force.

Washington Canal Park

A Focal Point for Emerging Retail, Housing and Offices Uses

Project Overview

Washington Canal Park will be the first public park built under the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative and promises to be an inviting area attraction and a model of sustainable development. The park will provide a green pedestrian link between Capitol Hill and the revitalized waterfront, creating a focal point for the area’s emerging high-density, mixed-use development that includes the new U.S. Department of Transportation headquarters and the Capper-Carrollsburg housing development. It will be a centerpiece of the Near Southeast waterfront neighborhood, where residents and visitors can enjoy the park’s many amenities and special events. The site once connected the Anacostia River to the U.S. Capitol and the Potomac River. The park’s design will reflect the historical significance of the area while protecting the Anacostia River from harmful runoff through a series of ponds that will use innovative technology to filter stormwater through sand. In 2004, the District of Columbia partnered with the National Endowment for the Arts to conduct an open design competition for the new park and received an overwhelming response from leading landscape designers across the country. A team of nationally recognized experts selected the winning design by landscape architects Gustafson Guthrie Nichol. AWC also negotiated a design contract with the architects that includes requirements for hiring local, small, and disadvantaged business enterprises (LSDBE) as contractors; ensuring public participation; and researching the history of the Washington Canal.

Fairfax-based developer Milton V. Peterson resurrected the concept, and National Harbor, the largest non-gambling hotel and conference center on the Eastern Seaboard, is scheduled to open for business in April 2008. Nine hundred thousand room nights have been booked, with reservations made up through 2012, and some conventioneers are already clamoring for hotel space in Old Town.

August 13, 2007

Clark Construction Group, LLC recently completed construction of the first retail and office building at National Harbor, a new mixed-used development just south of Washington, D.C., in Prince George's County, Md. Clark constructed the building for The Peterson Companies, ofFairfax, Va.

The deal to build a convention center hotel, long plagued by squabbles over its location and who would pay for it, is now in serious jeopardy of collapsing under the weight of the nation's credit crunch.

Marriott International and RLJ Development, the hotel company started by BET founder Robert Johnson, had been planning to build the District's biggest hotel, with 1,400 rooms, at Ninth Street and Massachusetts Avenue NW, across from the convention center. But investors and people involved in the deal say the timing may have made it untenable: The hotel boom has shown signs of slowing, interest rates and construction costs are rising, and it is difficult and more expensive for developers to borrow money from banks.

The project was expected to cost $550 million and be completed in 2009, but with construction costs rising as the project encountered delays and the D.C. government having to buy land, it is now likely to cost $750 million and not open until 2012 or 2013.